Small clothing brands can make complex pieces like jackets and jeans by customizing existing garments instead of designing from scratch. Chrome Hearts does this with Levi's denim. You skip sampling costs, factories won't reject low-quantity orders, and customers already trust the base piece.
If you're a small clothing brand that's just getting started and wants to make a more complicated piece like a jacket or a pair of jeans, why not repurpose vintage? An example of this is when Chrome Hearts takes Levi's denim and adds their infamous crosses to it. The reason I think this is a good move is because developing your own jeans or your own jacket is gonna cost thousands of dollars in sampling and is gonna be very hard to produce at low quantities. It's also a challenge to find a factory willing to produce low minimums for such a complicated product. By using an existing brand, people will already be familiar with the product you're releasing to some extent, and it acts as a seal of quality. It also means that you're not going to have to make any samples. The fit is going to be perfect and people are getting exactly what they're expecting. A pair of Levi's jeans or a Dickies jacket is widely available, and they're very easy to get your hands on. I'm curious to hear your thoughts.
